Fossil Fuels

8th December 2018

Environmental campaigners have accused the SNP of “climate hypocrisy” after an Aberdeen MP backed new tax breaks for the North Sea oil industry. Friends of the Earth (FoE) said it was “appalled” that Aberdeen North MP Kirsty Blackman supported the tax breaks.

Nearly 300 tonnes of oil and chemicals accidentally spilled into the North Sea in 2017, according to a new environmental report. The report, published today by representative organisation Oil and Gas UK (OGUK), claims 279 tonnes of hazardous material were released.

The Oil and Gas UK report (OGUK) claims than 279 tonnes of oil and chemicals were “accidentally released”. In total, 23 tonnes of oil were released in 451 accidental oil and chemical releases. Despite a reported decrease in the amount of oil releases from previously reported in 2016, over 220 accidental release cases reached the North Sea marine environment according to the study. The OGUK report found that accidental oil reaching the North Sea accounted for a mere 0.00003% of the 81 million tonnes of oil produced in 2017. The report also stated that 96% of the chemicals released are deemed to be “low hazard” chemicals. The amount of accidental oil released fell from 115 tonnes in 2016, to 23 last year.

Clients have included Greenpeace, Nuclear Free Local Authorities, WWF Scotland and the UK Government’s Committee on Radioactive Waste Management.

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